Mars | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/mars/RSS feed for MarsenTue, 30 Jun 2026 13:38:51 +0000Mars Rover Spots Complex Carbon on the Red Planet, Marking Yet Another Detection of a Building Block of Lifehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mars-rover-spots-complex-carbon-on-the-red-planet-marking-yet-another-detection-of-a-building-block-of-life-180989043/Along with other recent discoveries, the new finding from Perseverance boosts the case that Mars once hosted conditions that could support living things—but it isn’t a definitive sign of ancient organismsTue, 30 Jun 2026 13:38:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mars-rover-spots-complex-carbon-on-the-red-planet-marking-yet-another-detection-of-a-building-block-of-life-180989043/NASA Officially Ends the MAVEN Mission Months After Losing Contact With the Mars Orbiterhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-officially-ends-the-maven-mission-months-after-losing-contact-with-the-mars-orbiter-180988897/The agency last heard from the spacecraft on December 6. Recovered fragmentary data suggest that MAVEN was spinning unexpectedly, hinting at a change in its trajectory and draining its batteriesThu, 04 Jun 2026 18:51:26 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-officially-ends-the-maven-mission-months-after-losing-contact-with-the-mars-orbiter-180988897/A Blip on a Telescope in a Colorado Parking Lot Bolstered a Space Mission That Has Found Thousands of Planets … and Countinghttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/blip-telescope-colorado-parking-lot-bolstered-space-mission-found-thousands-planets-counting-180988801/The Kepler telescope changed how we saw the sky. It’s just one of the devices we’ve sent out beyond the reach of humans to search our solar systemThu, 04 Jun 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/blip-telescope-colorado-parking-lot-bolstered-space-mission-found-thousands-planets-counting-180988801/NASA Unveils New Details About the Future Moon Base and the Missions Laying the Groundwork to Build Ithttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-unveils-new-details-about-the-future-moon-base-and-the-missions-laying-the-groundwork-to-build-it-180988837/The first three missions are targeted to launch this year. They’ll involve lunar landers developed by several aerospace companies, including Blue Origin, and deliver scientific instruments and a roverWed, 27 May 2026 20:47:37 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-unveils-new-details-about-the-future-moon-base-and-the-missions-laying-the-groundwork-to-build-it-180988837/